Warning: Some of the songs mentioned and/or linked in this article may contain explicit language.

By Kevin Johnson

There has been some major controversy recently in the rap world. One notable piece of rap news is the “Rap Civil War” through the rap industry. This all came to fruition when rapper Future and rapper and producer Metro Boomin’ released a collab album on March 22 titled We Don’t Trust You. The diss was on the sixth song on the album, “Like That.” The song included a surprise feature from Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper Kendrick Lamar, who did most of the dissing. He called out artists Drake and J. Cole, saying he was a better rapper than them. Metro backed the diss on social media, saying “Once you pick a side, stay there.” The “Civil War” turned more into a head-on-head battle between Lamar and Drake. The beef quickly escalated, with Lamar and Drake dropping multiple diss tracks from April 30 to May 5. What started as a fight between multiple rappers had become more of a sour battle between the two. Lamar’s disses have gone viral all over social media. To the average listener, rap beefs can seem arbitrary and unnecessary. However, it is just the nature of the genre. 

Cover art for Boogie Down Production’s 1987 album Criminal Minded. Image credit: B-Boy Records.

A beef or battle in music is something that predates rap. Even in the early days of jazz, each instrument would battle throughout the song, a practice which was sometimes called “cutting.” The soloist of each instrument would try to outdo their fellow bandmates. Hip hop itself has heavy roots in jazz. Hip hop started in the boroughs of New York, primarily the Bronx, in the early 1970s. Like jazz, there was constant competition between early hip hop artists. From battle rap to record scratch competitions to even dance battles, there were constant competitions throughout the world of hip hop. 

One of the most notable at the time was the feud between the groups Juice Crew and Boogie Down Productions. The feud began in 1986 when KRS-One and DJ Scott La Rock, the main members of Boogie Productions, were turned down by Mr. Magic to join the Juice Crew. Salty and slightly envious of the Juice Crew, KRS-One and La Rock released a song titled “South Bronx.” The song was a direct response to the Juice Crew’s “The Bridge.” Some speculate that the Juice Crew was claiming that hip-hop started in the Queens borough: “You love to hear the story again and again of how it all got started way back when.” So when the Boogie Down crew went after the Juice Crew, the song gained traction in the Bronx. To counter, the Juice released “Kill that Noise.” Their lead in the battle was short-lived, as the Boogie Down crew released the “The Bridge is Over.” Hip hop writer Shawn Setaro claims the record to be “one of the greatest, if not the greatest, diss songs of all time.” KRS-One got even more personal on the record. The Boogie Productions crew revolutionized the world of rap beef. Feuds like Tupac versus Biggie and East Coast versus West Coast followed years after. As time passes, rap feuds seem to become more obscure and arbitrary.  

Cover art for “Push Ups” by Drake. Image credit: Drake via Instagram. 

The beef between Lamar and Drake has escalated rapidly in the last few weeks. After the release of “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle,” many people thought Lamar wouldn’t respond to Drake. But on April 30, Lamar broke his silence and released “Euphoria.” The track was packed with metaphor and entendre. The main theme was Drake’s race and upbringing. He claimed that Drake is appropriating Black culture and perpetuating harmful stereotypes. 

Lamar then went back-to-back and dropped a song, “6:16 in LA,”  that same week on Friday, May 3. In the song, he claims that Drake’s circle has a mole who is feeding him information. Later that night, Drake released “Family Matters,” a response to Lamar’s songs and a song released by Rick Ross. Drake addressed some of what Lamar was saying in his past two songs. He also alleged that Lamar and his wife had some marital issues, claiming there were some instances of domestic abuse. 

Cover art for “Not Like Us,” featuring Drake’s house. Image credit: Kendrick Lamar via Instagram. 

Less than an hour after Drake released his single, Lamar released a track of his own entitled, “Meet the Grahams.” The song is very personal about Drake and his family. Lamar individually named all of Drake’s family members. He brought some heavy-hitting accusations and called Drake a pedophile and deadbeat father. He alleged that Drake even had an 11-year-old daughter that he was hiding. Both tracks gained traction, making fans start to speculate who was telling the truth. The next day, Lamar dropped “Not Like Us,” doubling down on his previous claims. Since its release on music platforms, the song has sat at number one or two on the Billboard top 100. Drake released another song the next day entitled, “The Heart Part 6,” denying all of Lamar’s accusations. He also claims that he had a fake mole give Lamar fake information. The song struggled to gain the traction and popularity of Lamar’s tracks.      

Cover art for “6:16 in LA.” Image credit: Kendrick Lamar via Instagram. 

Things have dwindled down for the time being. Neither artist has yet to release any music since May 5. Many people have started to pick sides, though there still is not much reputable evidence to prove either of their claims. However, it seems that social media support is overwhelmingly on Lamar’s side. Three of Lamar’s songs are in the top ten on the Billboard charts. There isn’t any indication that either of the two is going to continue the beef; however, these past few weeks have been exciting for the rap industry.